ODU Stops USF's Charge at the StaffDNA Cure Bowl, 24-10

The Old Dominion Monarchs of the Sun Belt Conference defeated the South Florida Bulls 24-10 in the 11th edition of the StaffDNA Cure Bowl. The game with a cause secured the 10th win of the season for ODU and extended a 10-year losing streak in the city of Orlando for USF.

Both teams entered the contest with their starting quarterback opting out of the event. Accordingly, each of the offenses was contained to open the contest. USF’s Gaston Moore was sacked twice in the first two drives while Old Dominion’s Quinn Henicle didn’t complete a pass until six minutes in when the Monarchs moved the chains for the game’s opening first down.

Shortly after that, Bulls linebacker Jarivs Lee forced a Heincle fumble which was recovered by Fred Gaskins. Gaskins’ 22-yard return set up the first points of the contest — a 28-yard field goal by Nico Grammatica (son of famed NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers Kicker Martin Grammatica).

The Monarchs answered back with the following drive on a 10-play 75-yard drive that was capped off by a six-yard Heincle rush for a touchdown to take the lead by the end of the first quarter, 7-3.

He was ODU’s leading rusher with 107 yards on 21 carries with a pair of rushing touchdowns. Not to be outdone, Devin Roche recorded 100 yards on the ground with 19 carries.

After Grammatica missed a 48-yard field goal attempted at the start of the second quarter, both sides traded possessions until halfway through the period. That was when USF quarterback Gaston Moore heaved a 31-yard bomb to Jeremiah Kroger in the corner of the endzone for the first passing touchdown of the contest.

Grammatica’s miss is significant considering he’s made seven of his eight attempts between 40 and 50 yards with only four misses total in the entire season. This is also his first 2025 game with multiple misses.

In the closing minute of the half, the Monarchs had an opportunity to respond, making it into the red zone. Heincle missed a wide-open Jailen Butler in the end zone. With a chance to tie, Old Dominion lined up for a 37-yard field goal. The snap was fumbled for a turnover on downs leaving a 10-7 halftime score.

Moore finished the game completing 20 of his 28 passes (71%) for 236 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions while being sacked four times.

To open the second half, Moore threw his second interception of the game which gave the Monarchs the ball on the Bulls’ 25-yard line. Jones jaunted into the endzone three plays later from 20 yards out. This made it 14-10 for the third lead change of the game with 10:06 left in the 3rd quarter.

Jones finished the game with 56 yards on eight carries.

ODU tacked a field goal from 24 yards by Nathaniel Eichner to make it 17-10. It came at a high cost during the drive. Heinncle was knocked out of the game for a play on a hit that was ruled targeting against USF. LB De’Shawn Rucker was ejected with 4:20 left in the 3rd quarter. On the next play, Monarchs wide receiver Tre Brown was helped into the locker room with an apparent leg injury.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Bulls pinned the Monarchs on their one-inch line. On a controversial call, USF avoided a touchback on a punt where a player was in the end zone, and then jumped out to make contact with the ball.

The Monarchs were forced to punt from their own end zone to give USF solid field position. On that drive with 12:34 left in the game, Moore left the field with an apparent injury and a possible concussion. Locklan Hewlett entered the game as the Bulls quarterback. With penalties and a sack, the Bulls went from the redzone to the other side of the 50 in a handful of plays in the aftermath of Moore’s departure.

After South Florida punted and forced an Old Dominion three-and-out. When the Monarchs punted, the Bulls muffed the kick recovered by Brenden Durkin. This set up a 36-yard field goal try by Eichner with a chance for a 10-point lead with six minutes left in the game, which was shanked.

As the Bulls fought to even the game up, Hewlett had an opportunity to hit Jeyquan Smith for a big gain, but safety Jerome Carter got away with an early hit that could have been called for pass interference. Two plays later, Carter snagged his second pick of the night, which got his squad the ball. On the next drive, Heincle streaked 51 yards to the house on a designed run that secured the victory.

Despite Henicle’s rough day, completing 11 of his 25 passes for 127 yards, his big day on the ground and his toughness coming back from the big hit made him the Player of the Game for the Cure Bowl.

This article is dedicated to James Kristian Nash and “Dr.” Jerome Griffin, who were both taken by thyroid cancer.